A point of pain
by Jessica Jandrt
Summary: Pearl falls in love with a boxer


When a Diamond's good name and reputation are put in contest with another, no holds are barred. If there was one phrase to describe the event, it was "all out". Apparently the patrons knew as well that it was an event hosted by two of the four diamonds, it was not an event to miss. Dancers were out performing by 17:00, drinks and food had already been flowing freely for a couple of hours, and in a couple more the fights would be starting. Pearl got the chance to see the weigh-ins for the various fighters. They started with the lowest ranking fighters, presenting Yellow Diamond's representative first. Each of the four sets of fighters were matched up weight wise.

"Next up we have the two Champions! Let's begin with Yellow Diamond's champion, GARNET!"

Garnet stepped out and onto the scale wearing mid-thigh, skin tight, black, fighting shorts, a maroon sports bra, and her sunglasses. She crossed her arms and flexed as the numbers were read. Wolf-whistles and catcalls came from every direction.

"Garnet is 21 years old, a young fighter holding an impressive Underground fighting record of 57-6. She stands at 6 feet, 6 inches tall and weighs in at 220 pounds of solid muscle!" the main announcer spoke up.

"Wow, she sure has gained some weight since the last time she was here," one of the other announcers commented.

"Whatever they've been feeding her must have all gone straight to her thighs," the first announcer rolled on the jab.

The crowd roared with laughter. Pearl grimaced; they certainly didn't have the home court advantage here.

"Now for White Diamond's champion, please welcome IMPERIAL TOPAZ!"

Imperial Topaz stepped out into the spotlight. He stood a couple inches taller than Garnet and reminded Pearl of the statues carved of the Greek Gods. Each muscle was defined and bulging with power. He wore a pair of white fighting shorts like Garnet, but no shirt; his steel necklace standing out against his tan skin. As he stood on the scale he raised his arms up to flex in the typical pose. Pearl couldn't help but roll her eyes.

"Imperial Topaz is a seasoned fighter at the age of 41! He holds an unprecedented Underground fighting record of 187-2! Standing at 6 feet, 9 inches tall, Imperial Topaz is 273 pounds of pure power!"

The crowd roared for White Diamond's champion. The thin gem scoffed. Apparently weight was not a factor in champion matches; Imperial Topaz had over fifty pounds on Garnet. The light eyed woman mentally recalled a number of Garnet's matches, the gem was used to fighting outside of her weight class; this wasn't anything she wouldn't be able to handle. Imperial Topaz stepped off the scale and walked right over to Garnet; standing close enough that their noses were touching as he looked down at her. Garnet didn't move an inch. A couple of jaspers stepped in between them after a few moments and directed the two off to their sides of the stage. Pearl was called off soon afterward to get more water for the dancers.

"The winner for the fourth match of the evening is Jasper of the yellow team!"

"Now that makes the two teams tied, White Diamond and Yellow Diamond both have two victories apiece. It will be down to the champions to see who will win the head-to-head competition!"

"Before we call out the fighters let's just go over some history here. So far Garnet and Imperial Topaz have faced off three times," the first announcer sidetracked.

"And Imperial Topaz has been the winner all three times; it won't be much of a contest no matter how much Garnet has been talked up."

"Well to be somewhat fair to Garnet one of those matches was when she was just barely named Yellow Diamond's champion and another happened only a few months after that in the 2nd Diamond Tournament. She's grown a lot since that time."

"Yes, but the match a year and a half ago is a clear indicator, that even with more experience, she is just no match for Imperial Topaz. He's got years of experience, strength, reach, and skill on his side," the second countered.

"True, but Garnet is extremely fast and has both a deadly standing and ground game. Not to mention she hasn't lost a match since her last face off with Imperial Topaz; including a match against Pink Diamond's champion and several other notable fighters."

"Well either way it's going to be decided tonight in just a few minutes. We just got word that it's time to bring out the champions."

The crowd roared in anticipation, sections chanting for their favored fighter. Pearl turned to look down at the ring as Garnet's entry music began to flow from the speakers. In a minute Garnet was lightly hopping from foot to foot on her side of the ring, a sheen of sweat glistening on her skin.

"I can tell you want to watch the match," Carnelian said off to the side of Pearl.

Pearl jumped slightly. Did she want to watch the match? Should she want to watch the match? Her lingering eyes on the ring and pausing whenever Yellow Diamond's champion's name was said out loud spoke volumes. Why would she want to watch a violent sport? Was she becoming used to it? A light huff escaped her lips. The thin woman couldn't deny her desire to watch Garnet's match.

"Yes, ma'am," she timidly admitted.

"Pearl 00687 offered to take care of things while the match is going, but if we need your help we will call you."

"Thank you very much, ma'am."

"Just be sure to thank Pearl 00687 properly as well."

"I will; thank you, ma'am."

Carnelian nodded and walked back to her seat. Relief washed over at the same time another feeling of disgust crept up. Pearl pushed it away again, she was going to enjoy the small break she got and watch the highly anticipated match. Luckily with fights going on, no dance performances were happening, thus giving their group overall a small bit of a break.

"Just a reminder to all of you, champion matches will go for five rounds of five minutes each. If there is no stop of the match before then by our referee, then it will go to the judges to decide on who won the match," the announcer's voice boomed over the commotion.

"Now turn your attention to the ring, the fight you've all been waiting for is about to begin!"

The referee called the two fighters to the middle. He gave a short reminder of the rules, had them bump gloves; and then dismissed them to their sides before starting the match. At the sound of the bell, the two fighters moved to meet in the middle. Imperial Topaz pushed forward taking the center, forcing Garnet to dance around in the perimeter. For the first thirty seconds or so the two champions carefully stepped around each other, throwing a few punches and kicks here and there getting a feel for each other. Garnet suddenly lunged in for a double-leg take-down, her powerful legs enabled her to clear the few feet between them in an instant and wrap her arms around his knees, but Imperial Topaz reacted in just enough time to skillfully sprawl, breaking the dark fighter's hold and rendering the advance useless. Gloved fists struck Garnet's exposed sides repeatedly until Garnet was able to work up to a standing clench. From there the two traded close-range punches and elbows. Multiple attempts were made to take the other down. The larger fighter would try to bear down on Garnet, attempting to force her to the ground and she would shift her hips and body just so that she maintained her balance in the clench. Frustrated, Imperial Topaz shoved Garnet away and came after her with his usual striking range, bombarding her with combos as he drove her towards the fence. Cheers from the crowd increased from the exciting change in pace. The darker champion blocked and avoided most of the punches, expertly sneaking in a couple of retaliating taps that didn't even faze the larger fighter. Garnet took a step diagonally backwards, dangerously close to the fence. Imperial Topaz drove after her, powerful fists sailing through the air. The curly haired fighter slipped through each one as she cut a corner and hit him in the side several more times with her fast fists. Those also seemed to not have any affect. Several tense moments passed as the two worked their respective ranges, trying to find a good opening. Lightning fast feet pushed off the floor as Garnet went for another double leg take down. At first it looked like Imperial Topaz was just going to break out again, but Garnet immediately switched it to a single leg and threw him off balance enough that she could bring him down. The spectators jumped to their feet.

Pearl silently cheered along with them, hands almost jumping up into the air but she kept them at her side.

Garnet methodically worked to claim Imperial Topaz's side, but he was able to shrimp away and regain his feet with a risky scramble. She pushed after him, hoping to keep him off balance. Fists only met air until a retaliating one crashed into Garnet's nose. The smaller fighter quickly back-pedaled, lips pulled south into a deeper frown, blood starting to run down her face. More cheers as the first sight of blood was celebrated. Imperial Topaz chased the opportunity and let loose a barrage of attacks. Dangerous strike after dangerous strike was narrowly avoided by Garnet. A distinct clapping sounded, signaling to the two champions that they had ten seconds left. Garnet struck out, her fists connecting a couple of times at the cost of getting hit in the body and face a handful more times. At the bell the ref stepped between them and told them to back off. As they rested and regrouped for the next round, Imperial Topaz looked fine while Garnet dabbed at her bloody nose trying to get it to stop.

With the clang of the bell the second round had begun and the two fighters were at each other again. This time Garnet took the center and forced Imperial Topaz to dance on the perimeter. She would lunge forward, slip through his defenses, smash her fists into his body and face; then reclaim her spot in the center before he could grab or hit her. On one of these swift attacks, a portion of Imperial Topaz's skin around his eye burst open. Red stained his glistening sweaty skin. Garnet went after that spot, trying to aggravate that area as much as possible, forcing him to be more defensive of it so she would have other openings. The seasoned fighter was no fool, after baiting Garnet with what she was going for he caught her with a solid hit to the gut. Another gloved fist struck, restarting the blood flow from the dark fighter's nose.

Pearl clenched her teeth, hands curling into fists. Cheers from the crowd grew.

Garnet lost control of the ring as she was back on the defensive. Sweat dripped like rain from their bodies. Slowly and steadily the younger fighter recovered from her loss. Several solid kicks landing to Imperial Topaz's legs accompanied by a front kick to his sternum forced him back. Using his backward momentum, Garnet was able to corner the other champion against the fence and take him down. Excitement jumped from the crowd at the sound of the large bodies hitting the floor. The second round was close to ending. Garnet quickly gained control of his side and delivered several vicious elbows to the face and cringe inducing knees to his ribcage. More blood joined the previous splatters on the floor. Her advantage was short lived as Imperial Topaz was able to get his guard up and keep Garnet's strikes at bay. They were locked in a power struggle with Imperial Topaz trying to flip Garnet over to have a mount position, while Garnet was trying to break through his guard or use it to her advantage. It was a physical game of chess as movements were careful and calculated. Garnet would fake a movement in hopes of gaining a split-second advantage in her true aim. Several times she got really close to breaking out of the guard and changing things up, but Imperial Topaz was able to supplement his lack of skill with his brute strength. Even with Garnet elbowing and punching as much as she safely could it had little to no affect. When the buzzer sounded the two were stood up and sent to their respective corners.

In the third round Imperial Topaz came out with vigor. He had been able to recover somewhat during the standoff on the ground in the second round while Garnet had been worn down from trying to break free and preventing him from reversing their positions. Powerful punches were more blocked and absorbed than avoided. Crimson leaked onto the floor from the female fighter's face. Garnet got a number of good hits in, but it still didn't seem to faze the hulking figure of Imperial Topaz. It became more evident as the round went on the toll of all those hits on her body. She was wearing down. Welts from kicks could be seen forming on both of the fighter's thighs, bruises and reddened areas appeared on their skin, chests heaved up and down as they breathed heavily, movements were less fluid, and favored types of kicks and punches were used instead of daring techniques. Imperial Topaz launched at Garnet with a fast flurry of his fists. The smaller fighter weaved back and forth, barely slipping past each dangerous strike. Cheers rang out along with boos as Garnet quickly danced away and regained some distance between them.

Pearl became conscious of the fact she had been holding her breath and immediately corrected it.

Mismatched eyes narrowed in concentration as Garnet redirected another punch before she retaliated in kind, hitting the split in Imperial Topaz's skin. He pulled back into defense, lips pressed together into a thin line. Garnet didn't miss a beat; she saw the opportunity and landed two more consecutive hits to his face. However, the massive fighter only seemed to stumble for a moment before the hits were shaken off. Imperial Topaz dropped low in an attempt to tackle the smaller fighter. Garnet sprawled, temporarily stopping him. Feet quickly drove against the floor propelling the larger fighter forward; shoving the dark fighter back with his brute strength. Mismatched eyes went wide. She had to hop backwards towards the fence in order to prevent herself from losing her balance and getting forced to the ground. Garnet grimaced as she was shoved up against the fence. For the few seconds she could, she rained down strikes on the side of Imperial Topaz's exposed face. The larger fighter expertly moved up into a standing clench. He made several movements to take Garnet down, but her defensive measures helped her last until the bell rang signaling the end of the third round. Both fighters breathed heavily as they prepared for the fourth round.

Garnet took control of the fourth round; she came out with a solid double-leg take-down that Imperial topaz was unable to avoid. The younger fighter was on top of him in an instant as she took the mount position. Powerful fists and elbows crashed against his face and arms. Crimson jumped onto the floor. Unfortunately, it didn't last long enough and despite her best efforts to remain on top, Imperial Topaz was able to use his size and raw strength to shove Garnet up and over. He rolled her hoping to get mount position, but she locked her legs around his torso, trapping him in her guard. They worked from there, trading punches and attempts to change the position to one that was more favorable for two minutes. As Imperial Topaz made another movement, Garnet saw an opening and snapped on an almost complete triangle choke around his neck. Realizing the potential danger he was in, Imperial Topaz braced his arm and pushed up against the muscular leg across his upper back. Garnet reached up and tried to lock in the choke even tighter, but was having trouble once again fighting his brute strength. One minute remained in the round. A few more punches were delivered by Garnet to hopefully soften him up. Twenty seconds remained. Imperial Topaz stood up to try and bear his weight down on Garnet and break free. The smaller champion seized the opportunity and took a hold of the back of his ankles, driving her hips forward causing the larger gem to fall onto his butt. Garnet launched herself up onto his chest, successfully locking in the triangle choke. Ten seconds remained. She squeezed with all her might, compressing the space between her legs to almost nothing. Imperial Topaz's face was turning a dark shade of red, but he still was not tapping out. 5 seconds. Garnet unleashed a flurry of punches on his bloodied face. 2 seconds. 1 second. The referee jumped in and forced Garnet off. She stormed off to her corner, breathing heavily, and legs shaking. Imperial Topaz slowly got to his feet, blood dripping from his badly cut face onto the floor. His corners were shouting at him and wiping away the thick red substance. Garnet stood in her corner alone, only drinking a little water as she waited for the final round to begin.

As the clocked counted down to the fifth and final round, the crowd chanted their favored champion's name over and over again. Everything seemed to have come to a stop as everyone was watching the fight unfold its last chapter. Sweat and blood dripped off Garnet's form as she came after Imperial Topaz once again. The larger champion sluggishly countered and blocked, letting his resilient body absorb the number of hits Garnet landed. An angry cry burst from the dark fighter's lips as she punched him in the side. Imperial Topaz stumbled back. Garnet latched onto it, pushing forward, beating the ribs and the side of his face until he was hiding behind his arms and backing away. All seemed to be going in Garnet's favor until Imperial Topaz weaved and shot out one hit that got her right in the nose once again. As her head was snapped back, eyes strewn shut in pain, Imperial Topaz stood tall. His thick legs scored a particularly hard kick to Garnet's quadriceps of her leading leg. The leg momentarily gave out causing her to drop her fists ever so slightly. Imperial Topaz followed with a punch that shot Garnet's mouth guard straight out of her mouth. Sweat and spit spraying out like a wet towel being spun around. Dazed, with blood leaking from her mouth, Garnet tried to revert to a defensive stance; bobbing and weaving while keeping her face covered. Imperial Topaz sloppily trapped her against the fence and was not letting up for a second. Body hit, elbow, body, face, body, face, elbow, stomach, face. He then quickly took her down and claimed the mount position.

Pearl clenched her fists as she watched Garnet try to endure the onslaught.

Garnet's dark arms shot out and wrapped tightly around Imperial Topaz's torso, cutting off his space to punch. Mismatched eyes were closed as blood seeped out from both nostrils, her mouth, and several cuts on her face. She tried in vain to reverse the position, only to be shoved back to the ground. The crowd went wild as Imperial Topaz reclaimed the needed space to deliver dangerous punches and lethal elbows.

Pearl could hardly see Garnet's face as the champion tried to block the never-ending blows. Garnet was losing. The light gem's stomach sank as a dark arm fell limply to the side. Two hits to the face later and the referee was shoving Imperial Topaz off of Garnet's unconscious form. The older champion stood up and yelled, throwing his bloodied arms in the air to egg on the cheers he was getting. Pearl involuntarily put a hand to her mouth.

Garnet had lost.

Imperial Topaz paraded around the ring, the left side of his face badly swollen and leaking blood everywhere with his torso a bright red from all the hits he took. Slowly, Garnet's motionless form began to show signs of life. Carefully Garnet rolled onto her stomach and got onto her knees and hands; forehead resting against the mat. The dark champion rose to her feet, stumbling once, almost twice. The referee grabbed her gloved wrist and pulled her still dazed self towards the center of the ring. In the referee's other hand was Imperial Topaz's wrist. The referee raised Imperial Topaz's arm into the air as the announcers yelled.

"With a win in the fifth round by knock-out, White Diamond's Champion, IMPERIAL TOPAZ!"

The victorious champion stepped over to Garnet and pulled her in for what looked like a one-armed hug with a friendly pat on the back. Garnet returned the gesture for a second before her hands fell to hang limply at her side. Imperial Topaz turned to once again make a round around the ring as Garnet walked away to collect her mouth guard. Her two amethyst guards escorted her out of the ring. They made no move to help her as she stumbled down the steps and staggered on unsure feet back to where she came from.

Pearl was suddenly very nervous for Garnet.

"Wow, what a match! That was anyone's fight until the end. I'm really impressed with how Garnet came out tonight. I almost believed she was going to win in the end of the fourth with that triangle choke on."

"Yes it sure was a close one, a definite match to go down in the history books. Though, I honestly think Imperial Topaz had control the whole time. Garnet may have gotten some lucky shots in, but she was just unable to finish."

"You're right, and with a fighter like Imperial Topaz, you need to be able to finish. You can't give him one second to recover and that was Garnet's mistake."

With the fights now over, the dancers were flooding the stages enticing all of the patrons to come and watch them. Pearl was called away from the window and into action; they were due for their nutrition supplies for a late dinner. As Pearl and Pearl 00687 made their way to the kitchens, the patrons and gems were abuzz with the excitement of the fights. Pearl 00687 turned to Pearl as they pushed the food and drink supplies back to their base of operations.

"Are you ok? You look a little pale."

Pearl looked at her friend. "I'm a little surprised," she breathed out, "Garnet always wins."

"I know it seems like that, but the other champions are no joke. Imperial Topaz is rated the top champion right now out of the four of them."

"Still though, Garnet has faced other opponents of similar size and come out victorious."

Pearl 00687 shrugged. "Imperial Topaz is White Diamond's champion for a reason. And with White Diamond being the oldest diamond, it would make sense that her champion always wins."

"I guess so…" Pearl frowned. "Wait; there are ages to the diamonds?"

"Yes, the order goes White, Blue, Yellow, and then Pink. I haven't been here since before Yellow Diamond was well…Yellow Diamond. Only the older gems know of that time. Like Carnelian, she was a part of this before there was Yellow Diamond. Rumor has it she even knows what Yellow Diamond's real name is."

Pearl's eyebrows jumped up towards her hairline at this revelation.

"But it would be pointless to know that," Pearl 00687 continued, "if you were to call her by her real name I'm sure she'd kill you on the spot."

"Wow…I didn't know that. I just assumed that Yellow Diamond was always that." Light blue eyes focused on the flatbed she was pushing.

"In all honesty, the more I learn about this place, the more secrets I find. It's a never-ending twisted puzzle," Pearl 00687 lightly complained.

"Based off of what I've seen so far, I'm not sure if I want to know everything."

Pearl 00687 laughed. "True, so I guess ignorance is bliss?"

"Maybe…" Pearl mused.

When the pearls arrived with the rations, they were mobbed by the famished dancers. It didn't take long for several of the five-gallon jugs to be completely drained. The calls for more water pulled the two pearls away from what minor tasks they were helping with.

"I'll go get it," Pearl stepped up. "00687, take a break this time, as part of a thank you for covering for me during the fight," she finished with a smile.

"Nonsense, I'm coming with you," she brushed off as she stood up and joined Pearl. "Plus, fire opal needs some time to recover before I work on their calves again."

"That I do," they painfully agreed from where they were lying face down on the ground.

"What can I do to pay you back for taking my work for the half hour? I have some units left, I can do extra work, or something…" Pearl said as she pushed the empty jugs towards the main kitchen area.

"Don't worry about it, just keep it in mind if there's ever a time that I need a break or help with something, ok?"

"Of course." Pearl nodded. "Just be sure to actually let me know when you do need help, deal?" the pale gem playfully nudged her friend.

"Deal," Pearl 00687 smiled.

It took a while to work through the line at the kitchen and get all of the jugs filled up. Pearl could swear the gems under White Diamond were purposefully taking their time when it came to filling orders for gems from Yellow Diamond. She wished there were a few of their ambers there to even out the playing field. As she understood, they had their ambers working the stands they were allowed to set up, but access to necessities such as the freezer, storage space, water, heated water, etc., was all processed through White Diamond's gems. Though it was their food and water in there, they could only have it as quickly as White Diamond's ambers handed it out.

The two pearls walked side by side through the corridor that was on the shortest route back to the dancers.

"You two pearls, halt right there!"

They jumped, turned, and anxiously looked back. A gem was advancing on them. As he got closer, Pearl recognized him as one of the amethysts that usually guarded Garnet.

"One of you is to come with me," his eyes fell on Pearl and lit with recognition. "You," he grabbed her by the arm. "You're coming with me, Yellow Diamond's orders."

"Wait, what?" Pearl shouted out as she was dragged down the hallway.

One dangerous look from the amethyst shut her mouth. Pearl looked back at Pearl 00687 with a panicked expression.

"It's ok! I'll take the water back and explain to Carnelian!" Pearl 00687 shouted back at her.

The amethyst didn't let go of her arm until they had weaved through a couple of hallways and headed straight for a nondescript door. Pearl did her best to remember the path they had taken for she knew she would have to find her way back out. One large hand yanked open the door while the pale gem was shoved in with the other. Four large amethysts lumbered past them, exiting through the door they had just entered from. It shut behind the four amethysts and was promptly locked by the amethyst that had dragged Pearl there. Light blue eyes darted around to take in her surroundings as her heart pounded in her ribcage; her mind quickly trying to figure out what was going to happen to her. It was a medium-sized room, 20 feet by 20 feet, white walls with a concrete floor. Yellow Diamond was pacing back and forth in her yellow suit. Pearl 00010 stood still, looking straight ahead. The other amethyst who typically guarded Garnet was in the room along with Yellow Diamond's jasper bodyguards. Pearl's hands jerked towards her face as her eyes fell upon Garnet's figure lying sprawled out and face down on the floor. The champion's fighting uniform was stained with more blood than had been on it from the match and there was a thick smear of it on the floor beneath Garnet's head. Yellow Diamond finally noticed them.

"Took you long enough. You brought a pearl?" she asked the amethyst. "You didn't have to bring a pearl, any low ranked gem that could help Spinel 00046 would have worked," Yellow Diamond directed towards the amethyst standing behind Pearl.

"She was the first gem of ours that I ran into on my search, ma'am."

Yellow Diamond's eyes narrowed when she took a second glance at Pearl, recognizing her this time. "You…" She turned to the amethyst again. "Well at least this one is familiar with Garnet."

Yellow Diamond paced back towards the still figure lying on the ground.

"Get up!" she shouted.

No response came from the prone figure.

"I said GET UP you worthless piece of shit!"

Arms slowly moved to push the dark woman's torso up. They were successful in getting her a couple of inches off the ground, but the quaking limbs gave out and Garnet fell back to the ground.

"GET UP!" Yellow Diamond exclaimed as she violently kicked the fighter in the side below her ribcage.

Pearl flinched. A second attempt was eventually made but Garnet had even less success that time. The enraged woman paced around for a few moments, pausing a couple of times to glance at her champion. She looked ready to physically lash out at any instant. Eventually the pacing stopped. Yellow Diamond breathed out sharply and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I didn't think I would need those amethysts around any longer, but you've proved otherwise," she snarled at Garnet. "It's disgusting how pathetic you are and you're supposed to be my best." The terrifying woman turned to face Pearl and the amethyst standing behind her. "You pearl, pick this piece of shit up," she ordered Pearl as her face sharply gestured to Garnet's motionless body.

"Yes ma'am," Pearl thankfully replied without any hesitation.

Moving closer to the dangerous woman in order to approach Garnet made her frame shake and her breathing increase. The pale gem let out a shaky breath and tried to calm herself as much as possible. Pearl crouched in front of Garnet's mass of curls. If she focused on the task and didn't mess up, she would be okay. She leaned slightly forward and assessed which method of gripping the large body would yield success. The champion's back was rising and falling ever so slightly, Garnet was breathing. Pearl grabbed a hold of the fighter under the armpits, squatted down, and then began to stand up. She made sure to keep her back tight and straight so her legs would bear the bulk of the dead weight. Hands nearly slipped on the slick, sweat soaked clothing. Pearl quickly adjusted her grip, straining to get the woman off the floor. By leaning back with her weight onto her heels and driving up with her legs, she began to succeed. It was a laborious task of repeatedly pulling up, readjusting her grip, and pulling again with more leverage. Pearl almost gagged at the stench of sweat, blood, and vomit coming from the champion. As she hefted Garnet up the woman's face brushed against the upper half of her torso.

"Stand up! Stop making the pearl do all the work!" Yellow Diamond shouted at Garnet.

Through Garnet's shallow breathing she heard a weak groan as Garnet dragged her feet under her and attempted to stand. Gloved hands pushed on Pearl's shoulders for a moment as the champion regained her footing. Feet stumbled forward two steps and the pale gem got a face full of the sweaty, bloody rash guard as she pushed back to keep Garnet on her feet, arms now wrapped around the woman's waist. Once their collective balance was gained, Pearl carefully took one step away. The darker woman stood on her own for a second without any help, but then her left leg gave out and she stumbled sideways. Pearl rushed to Garnet's side to catch her. Teeth were gritted as she strained to keep Garnet from falling even more and pulling her back to a stable position. With one arm slung around Pearl and leaning heavily on her, Garnet was able to stay on her feet. The smaller woman wrapped one arm around Garnet's lower back and side, while the other rested against the front of Garnet's abdomen, ready to push back if the larger woman were to fall forward again. Garnet's head hung, facing limply towards the ground. Pearl looked to the side and almost let a gasp slip out. The side of the fighter's face was covered in blood. A long, crescent split in the skin ran from the middle of her eyebrow to just past the center of her eye; additional trails of the red fluid ran from her busted lips, broken nose, and several cuts in her skin. The champion's light brown eye was barely open and was staring out into the void while the blue eye was swollen shut. Pearl glanced down at the section of the floor Garnet had been covering earlier. Blood was splattered everywhere along with gory vomit. Her light blue eyes looked back up and noticed a wide brush of the substance, along with other spots, was on her shirt wherever Garnet had made contact with her. Pearl's mouth hung open in horror; these were not just injuries from the match. Garnet was able to walk before, now she could barely stand. Just what had been done to her? She looked around as much as she could trying to figure out what happened. The amethysts leaving right after she arrived, the blood all over the place, and even the specks of it on Yellow Diamond's suit. That along with Yellow Diamond's sharp words and violent actions clued Pearl in. This is what happens when Garnet loses.

"Look at me," Yellow Diamond demanded.

Garnet weakly raised her head so she was looking at her master. Yellow Diamond pulled out her gun and pushed it between Garnet's eyes. Pearl nearly cried out in shock.

"This? This is what I get after all that I have done for you? The years I put into you and this is how you repay me? With a shitty performance like that?"

In one fluid motion the gun was flipped around and whipped across the other side of Garnet's face. Light flecks of blood jumped all over the three of them. A new trail of red fluid joined the others from the fresh cut on Garnet's cheek.

"Do you have any idea how much money we lost?!" Yellow Diamond wound up again and slammed the butt of the gun against the darker woman's side; a mere couple of inches above where Pearl's hand was. "But no, your head was too far up your ass to even care!" Another hit. "Did you even want to win?" Another. "You couldn't even finish him while you had him right there!" Another dull thud of metal striking flesh. "What use is all of your training and care for if you're just going to waste it like this!" The next impact forced Garnet to gasp out in pain, drops of blood spraying out from her mouth.

Pearl's mind was reeling. She could feel how Garnet's body would tense and shake before and after each strike. She could feel the shallow breaths and the loss of strength with each hit. Garnet had already been badly hurt from the match! This was only making it worse!

"Please stop! You're severely hurting her!" Pearl cried out.

Pearl realized her mistake the instant those words jumped out of her mouth. The entire room went still. Yellow Diamond exhaled and rounded on Pearl; her eyes ablaze with wrath. The side of the handgun's handle crashed against the right side of the lower ranked gem's cheek. Pearl saw black spots dance in front of her vision for a moment. Cold metal was pressed in between her eyebrows. Light blue eyes were suddenly filled with terror as she stared up at the gun. Golden yellow eyes bored down into her own as Yellow Diamond breathed out heavily. A finger moved to rest on the trigger. This was it. Pearl was going to die. The weapon was swiftly jerked away only to painfully return and strike the left side of her mouth and jaw. For a moment Pearl's mind went fuzzy and her legs threatened to give out, but the adrenaline rushing through her body miraculously prevented it.

"You think I don't know what I'm doing?!" Yellow Diamond seethed.

Pearl looked down at the floor, frame quaking, her fresh blood joining with Garnet's on the concrete. She dare not open her mouth again. Yellow Diamond continued to stare down the pearl as she decided her fate.

"You will be reeducated upon your arrival back home. Twenty with number four." The diamond turned to the two amethysts. "Go get Spinel 00046, have her come and do a full diagnosis on Garnet."

One of the amethysts left with a curt, "Yes, ma'am."

"Ah, it appears I am too late," an unfamiliar voice rippled through the room.

Pearl timidly looked up to see a tall woman with rich sepia skin wearing a dark blue shawl that covered her eyes walk towards them with the assistance of a stainless-steel cane. To her side was a slim woman with fair russet complexion and a laptop clasped between her small hands; her long, blue bangs obscuring her eyes.

"Blue…" Yellow Diamond let out. "Why are you here?"

"I see you have already let Garnet know of your disappointment," she stated as she walked up to the badly beaten figure.

"Yes, I am letting her know."

"Let me show you something." The woman turned to Pearl. "Take off Garnet's gloves."

The pale woman glanced to Yellow Diamond for approval of the action.

"Do it," Yellow Diamond spat venomously.

"You might want to set her down while you do it," the other woman evenly spoke.

With a bit of a work, Pearl was able to get Garnet to sit down with an ungraceful plop. Since the fighter had yet to change after the match, the gloves were wrapped with the usual amounts of athletic tape. Pearl worked to remove the bloodstained tape around the base of the right glove; then removed the glove. Red peeked through the wrappings under the gloves. The pale woman carefully took those off as well. Garnet hissed as her knuckles were exposed to the air. The knuckles for the pointer and middle finger were busted open. Through the inch long split in the skin, Pearl could almost see the bones underneath.

"Hmmm, just what I thought," the woman in blue smiled.

"What?" Yellow Diamond sharply questioned.

"I just got back from watching White give Imperial Topaz an earful. Apparently he will be taking a mandatory break for a few weeks, something about a few fractured ribs, a cheek bone, and an orbital cavity."

"And why would I care about that?"

"Unwrap the other hand," Blue directed to Pearl. She turned to face Yellow Diamond. "Your girl hits hard, hard enough the break the skin underneath all of that protection, hard enough to break Imperial Topaz's face. You think she didn't perform her best? I say otherwise. When was the last time you saw Imperial Topaz have to fight in five rounds?"

Yellow Diamond didn't respond. The dark woman reached out and lifted Garnet's chin up. The champion's light brown eye looked up at the woman in blue. Pearl had finished removing the other glove to reveal another instance of the two split knuckles.

"Your champion performed phenomenally tonight."

"I disagree."

Blue smirked. "It looks bad, much worse than after the fight. If I were you, I wouldn't blow the 21 years I've invested in her by beating her into a vegetable."

Yellow Diamond glared at the woman. "I've invested almost 22 years."

"Imperial Topaz has twenty years on Garnet, and eleven years of champion and fighting experience."

"If Garnet can break his face, then why was he the one conscious at the end of the match while she was taking a little nap?" Yellow Diamond snapped.

"We all know Imperial Topaz has a chin of iron, he can get hit in the head as many times as he wants and he'll never go out. His skull is as thick as his arms." The woman faced Yellow Diamond. "Garnet's advantage lies in her ability to think and problem solve quickly in the ring. Try not to beat that advantage out of her."

"What I do with my champion is not your concern, Blue."

"No, it isn't," Blue admitted. "But don't forget that one of the main reasons why I vouched for you is because of her and your plans for her. You were committed to raising your own champion and I saw great potential in the child. Don't forget that, Yellow." She looked over at the woman who came in with her. "Come now Pearl, it's time to leave."

The woman silently nodded and followed Blue out. Light blue eyes caught the woman's silver tag.

"PEARL 00002

BD 0001"

Pearl swallowed; there was no doubt in her mind that she had just seen Blue Diamond and her pearl. Yellow Diamond stared at the door for a moment. Off to Pearl's side, Garnet painfully shifted from her sitting position to folding her legs underneath her. Garnet bent forward and bowed her head to the ground, palms pressed to the floor.

"Yellow Diamond," Garnet spoke, her voice laced with pain, "I fought my hardest."

Yellow Diamond slowly turned and looked down at Garnet's submissive posture. She took a couple steps towards Garnet.

"Look up at me," Yellow Diamond gently ordered.

The champion raised her head and looked up at her owner. They stared at each other for a few seconds. A sharp slap echoed through the room as Yellow Diamond back handed Garnet.

"If you really had we wouldn't be here," Yellow Diamond coldly stated.

Garnet looked at the ground as her hands balled into fists. Drops of red continued to steadily collect on the concrete.

"Spinel 00046 is here, ma'am," the returning amethyst said as a middle-aged woman with short black hair and fair yellow-brown skin, walked briskly up to them.

Draped around her shoulders was a standard white lab coat with dark blue scrubs underneath. Black, wire rimmed glasses were positioned in front of emerald green eyes.

"Up, up," Spinel motioned at Garnet. "I'm not bending down to check you over."

Pearl helped Garnet to her feet once again.

"Arms out," Spinel commanded while demonstrating.

The dark-skinned woman complied, wincing at the effort. The doctor poked, prodded, and asked Garnet to perform several actions. Pearl would have to help out occasionally. Lastly, she asked Garnet several questions and took a long look at her face.

"Well?" Yellow Diamond demanded after some time.

"Considering that she's just been through a long rough match and has dealt with your disappointment, she's doing pretty well." Spinel fixed Yellow Diamond with a stern gaze. "But, she is going to need to take it easy for at least three weeks. She has a bad concussion. Any work over mildly strenuous will have to be avoided for that time."

"We'll see about that."

"That's not negotiable, if she goes back to training before she can properly heal you risk her being susceptible to compounding concussions and lasting brain damage. I should be telling you to give her a month, but we both know that will never happen."

Yellow Diamond looked away. "What about the rest?"

"I'm going to have to stitch up a few areas; she's got some bruising on her ribs, potentially fractures. I would have to do an x-ray to know for sure. Oh and the broken nose, I'll just fix that right now." She said the last sentence more to herself.

Spinel reached up and placed her hands on either side of Garnet's crooked nose. A crack and a brief exclamation of pain from Garnet yielded a nose that looked more or less how it did in the past.

"In two hours White Diamond will have the recap, have Garnet cleaned up and presentable by then. I will not be embarrassed by this waste of space any more tonight. You can use the pearl to help you in this." With that final word, Yellow Diamond briskly left the room with the jaspers, and Pearl 00010.

Spinel turned to Pearl. "Make sure she doesn't fall over. Our medical station isn't too far away."

The doctor didn't waste any time. Pearl supported Garnet as they weaved through the people in the various hallways, the two amethysts trailing behind them as usual. Patrons and gems alike would often recognize Garnet. Some wouldn't say anything, while others were not so kind. The smaller gem grimaced whenever rude comments, jokes, and gestures were thrown at Garnet. As if the champion hadn't been through enough already. There was a moment when Garnet's legs temporarily gave out and Pearl had to strain once again to hold her up and regain their balance. Barely audible words of encouragement slipped past Pearl's lips. One swollen eye was turned to look at her, mild surprise written on the dark woman's features. Feet pressed on together. Thankfully the locker room they ended up in was void of patrons and White Diamond's gems. A reclining medical chair with rolling metal trays and medical supplies were set up off to the side. The other four of Yellow Diamond's fighting gems were in the large room. Pearl recognized the two fighter gems that had won their matches, and the other two that had lost. While the victorious gems were nursing drinks, freshly bandaged wounds, and good food, the gems that lost were nursing additional wounds with no such food or drink. The two amethyst guards posted themselves nearby the door.

"First we need to clean her off. She reeks. Take her into the shower and help her with that. Afterwards get her into some clean underwear. Be quick, we don't have much time," Spinel instructed as she handed Pearl Garnet's duffel bag.

The two walked to the adjoining room where there were a series of lockers and a row of showers. Thankfully there was one shower that was closed off for privacy. Pearl set the duffle bag on a nearby bench and dug around for a towel and toiletries. With the items in hand she turned to see Garnet struggling to take off her rash guard tank top.

"Let me help you with that," Pearl softly offered.

Garnet stilled and let Pearl pull off the sweat and blood soaked article of clothing. The pale woman raised an eyebrow at what she saw wrapped around the taller woman's chest.

"It helps keep them immobile while I fight," Garnet gruffly explained as she noticed Pearl staring at the duct tape wrapped around the two compression sports bras she wore.

"Oh," was all Pearl awkwardly said before she began searching for the end of the tape to pull it off.

It didn't take too much longer to help Garnet fully undress. Pearl handed Garnet the towel and toiletries. The fighter turned and limped into the shower; pulling the drape closed behind her.

"You better not be letting her in that shower alone!" Spinel shouted from the doorway. "If she falls I'm holding you responsible! And hurry up!"

Pearl quickly stepped into the shower, keeping her eyes on the floor. Her mind laughed at her behavior. She had seen Garnet naked plenty of times, why did she look down? It wasn't anything she hadn't seen before. The light woman looked up to see Garnet's long arms braced out on either side of the shower stall, rivers of warm water flowed down her muscular back, rear, and legs. Pearl quickly looked away, swallowing hard. The champion just stood there for a full minute just letting the water wash over her. Eventually she began to lather up with shampoo and soap. Pearl kept to the edge of the shower, trying to stay out of the spray as much as possible. A frustrated grunt drew Pearl's attention back to the other person in the shower.

"Pearl…"

Pearl noticed that Garnet was trying to reach her back, but her tired and beaten arms were not successful.

"Would you like me to help you?"

"Yes…please, I can't effectively reach my back."

"Yes, Garnet," Pearl stepped forward, grabbed the washcloth and soap, and began to gently scrub away.

Overspray slowly dampened Pearl's clothing, hair, and skin. Once Garnet's back had been cleaned, she turned around to let the water rinse her. Pearl leaned back at the sudden closeness of their bodies, but didn't dare take a step back.

"Thank you," Garnet said as she rang out the wash cloth.

The fighter rubbed more soap on the cloth and held it out to Pearl. The lighter woman furrowed her brow in confusion. Garnet's other hand motioned to her nose, cheek, and mouth. Realization spread over Pearl's face. She took the offered cloth and used it to clean off the blood on her face. The side where the gun had hit her was already swollen and tender to the touch with a small split of skin on her cheek near her eye. On the other side, both of her lips had been cut close to the corner of her mouth. Pearl doubted any bandages would be offered to her. Fortunately, the breaks in her skin didn't seem to big that they wouldn't heal properly over time. Once the washcloth had been returned, Garnet reached backwards and turned off the shower.

"You're welcome," Pearl replied with a small voice as she rang out the cloth.

Garnet simply nodded. The fighter began to dry herself off. However, she momentarily lost her balance as her one leg gave out on her again while she was trying to dry her lower body. The pale woman rushed to Garnet's side preventing her from potentially slipping on the wet tile. In the end Garnet braced against the shower stall with her arms while Pearl quickly dried her off the rest of the way. Pearl tried to fight the blush threatening to form on her cheeks. She was just drying her off. She had touched Garnet numerous times without clothes on, this was no different. The smaller woman's help was needed once again to get Garnet into her underwear; a simple, black sports bra and a pair of black boxer briefs.

"Finally!" Spinel exclaimed as they walked side by side back into the medical area of the room, Pearl hovering by Garnet's slightly hunched form.

Garnet smelled fresh and clean, while Pearl was slightly damp and had a mixed scent of sweat, blood, alcohol, and shampoo. The fighter tossed her duffel bag under a nearby bench.

"Took you two long enough. Get in the chair Garnet; we're going to stitch up your face first."

The dark woman silently sat down and laid back in the reclined chair while Spinel took a position behind her head; a tray of medical tools and supplies rolled up next to her. Spinel looked up at Pearl.

"I'm going to need you to keep her face still while I do this. It's much harder when they move around."

Pearl nodded and moved to Garnet's side. She leaned over and lightly braced her hands on both sides of the dark woman's face. Spinel began working on the large split in Garnet's skin around her eye. Garnet involuntarily jerked away when the doctor began to clean out the wound.

"Hold her still," Spinel tensely restated.

Pearl swallowed and firmly gripped Garnet's face.

"What about an anesthetic?" Pearl questioned.

Spinel glanced up at her giving her an incredulous look.

"We don't normally use that, it's unnecessary. Plus," she continued as she motioned to Garnet, "do you honestly think it would be wasted on someone who lost?"

Pearl didn't say anything, she just looked away. Truly this place was twisted and spared no one. As the large cut was cleaned out, Garnet did her best to stay put, but her body would still try to turn away from the pain. Spinel threaded the hooked needle and began the long process of stitching up the wound around her eye and the many other cuts on her face that needed stitches. Pearl breathed out heavily, her arms were getting tired. Light eyes drifted down for a moment. They made contact with a light brown eye. Pearl quickly shifted her eyes away. After another moment, she risked another look down. Once again they made eye contact. Garnet was staring at her. Pearl did her best to ignore that. A few strands of strawberry blonde hair fell into her face. She breathed out sharply to hopefully blow them back. It was a successful tactic for the first couple of tries, but the strands of hair came back with reinforcements. Pearl sighed heavily as the offending hairs once again fell in her face. There was a shift off to her left side; a dark toned arm came within her line of vision. Garnet's hand hovered by her face for just a few moments. When Pearl made no movement away from the appendage, the hand gently pushed the rebellious strawberry blonde strands behind Pearl's ear. Pearl looked down at Garnet, holding her gaze as she felt warm fingers lightly trace her uninjured cheek. She leaned into the touch without even thinking about it.

"Alright," Spinel's voice cut through. "Lean forward Garnet, we'll get those hands fixed up and then we'll be done."

The woman pushed the chair into a sitting position and rolled her tray of tools in front of them. Pearl stood up and discretely shook out her arms and hands.

"Make sure to keep her hands still," Spinel directed towards Pearl.

"Yes, ma'am."

Pearl reached down and held onto the areas of the hand below the thumb and pinky. Garnet let out a low grunt of discomfort as her split knuckles were cleaned and then stitched up. Thankfully it didn't take too much longer for Spinel to finish her work. The doctor cleaned up her supplies and walked away from the two of them. Garnet let out several heavy breaths. She got out of the chair and sat down on the bench her duffel bag was sitting under.

"Get dressed; Yellow Diamond will be here soon. And this is for your eye and nose, and here is one for your ribs." She said as she tossed two icepacks at Garnet.

Garnet almost caught one of the icepacks; it slapped her left shoulder before flopping into her lap. The other landed anticlimactically on the floor. She placed the icepack from her lap against her eye and hissed softly. Pearl glanced at the one on the floor. After Garnet made no movement to retrieve it, the pale gem leaned down and picked it up.

"May I?" Pearl asked as she held it close to Garnet's side.

Garnet regarded her with an odd expression, but eventually nodded. Pearl put the icepack against the dark gem's ribs. They sat like that for a few minutes. The fighter's breathing slowly evened out; her one open eye fixed on a random tile on the floor. It was different seeing her like this, Garnet genuinely seemed down. Pearl looked at the floor. Maybe Garnet was just as upset as Yellow Diamond was for losing. The lithe woman had no idea how many hours or how much preparation had gone into this fight, but if it was anything like preparing for a dance recital, it must have been a lot. And despite Garnet's best efforts, she had lost and then was beaten for it all while having insults thrown at her right and left.

"…you will never understand the role I carry and what comes with it."

So this is what happens when a champion loses.

This was one of the weights Garnet carried. The knowledge that if she ever lost a fight she would be treated like the worst of them.

"I should get dressed," Garnet broke the silence.

Pearl nodded, set the icepack down, and placed Garnet's duffel bag on part of the wooden bench. The fighter rummaged through the bag and pulled out her usual outfit. The lighter gem didn't even ask or wait to be asked before she helped Garnet get into her clothes. A small "thank you" made it past Garnet's lips as she pulled on a black leather jacket with a white fleece lining.

The door burst open just as Garnet was putting on her sunglasses. Yellow Diamond strode into the room closely followed by her jasper bodyguards and Pearl 00010. She stopped a foot away from Garnet, looking her up and down. The champion rolled her shoulders back and stood tall.

"It will have to do. Come now," Yellow Diamond said as she turned and began to walk out accompanied by her jasper guards.

Garnet took one limping step forward; she breathed out and steeled herself. She walked out with an ever so slight limp to her stride and her hands balled into lose fists at her side. Pearl was impressed, if someone looked at Garnet right now, they would have never guessed that just two hours prior the same person could barely stand and hold consciousness. Garnet's amethysts moved from their post and followed behind the champion. Pearl 00010 turned to address the thin gem.

"Pearl 01079, you are to report back to your original assignment. Relay the message that once the ending ceremony has been finished Yellow Diamond will want all gems loaded and ready to leave in four hours."

"Yes, ma'am."

Pearl 00010 turned and followed after Yellow Diamond's fading figure. Pearl let out a breath that she didn't know she had been holding. She glanced down at her watch. 00:31. A chime from her scheduler caught her attention. Pearl pulled out the device. In the spot after the arrival time back at Yellow Diamond's domain was a tan box.

"20:00: Reeducation: White Black 10142: Twenty with number 4."

Her stomach churned and the color drained from her face. She robotically put away the device and hugged herself. It was foolish of her to speak out against Yellow Diamond and she was going to pay dearly for it. Her mind recalled the terror that had filled her frame when the handgun had been pressed between her eyes only instants away from killing her.

"Hey! What are you still doing here?"

Pearl turned to see the victorious jasper walking up to her.

"Pearl 00010 told you to go, now get out of here!"

"Y-yes, sir!" Pearl quickly bowed and scurried out of the room.

"Fucking pearls…" the jasper muttered as he walked back to his chair.

The young woman entered the main room for all of the dancers. They were all over the place gathering their things together and cleaning up the mess. Numbly she watched them until one moonstone noticed her.

"Pearl 01079!" he exclaimed. "You're back!" His face pulled back. "What happened to you?"

Pearl looked at him confused for a moment; then she remembered that she had a large mess of blood on her shirt and her face probably didn't look too good. She opened up her mouth to reply but nothing really came out.

"Wow! Ow! Your face!" one lapis lazuli also exclaimed. "What happened? Both of you left for water a while ago, but only Pearl 00687 came back."

For a moment Pearl was losing control of her composure, everything from the past few hours rushed at her. Watching Garnet get beat, getting disciplined herself, nearly being killed by Yellow Diamond, and helping Garnet through her shower and stitches. Seeing Yellow Diamond's wrath, meeting another diamond, the cruel manner in which gems are treated when they fail to perform as expected. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes.

"Crying never helps you here,"Garnet's accented voice echoed in her mind.

Pearl straightened up and took a deep breath.

"I'm fine. Thank you for your concern," came her eerily even voice.

The dancers didn't look convinced, but they didn't push the issue. Pearl made her way through the crowd and found Carnelian working to pack up the various outfits. She fell in line with her and began to help.

"There you are!" Carnelian turned to face her. She frowned when she noticed Pearl's appearance. "Pearl 00687 told me that you were pulled aside for something. Whose blood is all over you?"

"Garnet's, ma'am."

"Ah. And your wounds? How did those happen?"

"I spoke out of turn at Yellow Diamond, ma'am."

"You need to control that tongue of yours."

Pearl silently took Carnelian's criticism. They worked tirelessly for the next few hours getting everything packed and cleaned. Soon all of the dancers were loaded onto the buses by 04:30. Pearl waved good-bye to Carnelian and the others before being escorted by the usual female amethyst to the black SUV. She stepped into the vehicle. Garnet was slumped in her usual spot. Head resting against the window and her arms folded around her torso.

"Wake her up every three hours; she needs to be monitored for the first day. If anything unusual happens, knock on the divider," the amethyst said before shutting the door.

The smaller woman sighed and looked over at the mentioned gem. By the spacing of her breaths, it was safe to assume that Garnet was asleep. Pearl was exhausted as well. Her feet ached, her stomach grumbled, her eyes lids felt like lead, and she smelled. Pearl pulled out her scheduler and set an alarm to go off in three hours. She then laid down on the seat and fell asleep instantly.


End file.
